The Magic Knight Chronicles
by HarmoniaBlade
Summary: Choosing to sacrifice their lives rather than let a weapon of mass destruction fall into enemy hands, six heroes suddenly find themselves in a new and strange world called Wonderland. Unfortunately they bring not only their enemies, but their war as well. Co-authored by Quiet Harmony-Chan and AccessBlade. Warning: Lots of Action.
1. Alexios: Prologue

And this, my friends, is what happens when _Quiet Harmony-Chan_ and I (_AccessBlade_) get together to plan a story for all you loyal readers out there. A whole new genre that took two weeks of planning despite the fact that I have about everything due this month.

So now that I have gotten this all off my chest, it is now time to reveal to you what we have written down after many hours of making the damned plot bunnies come out and play.

**Disclaimer: Quiet Harmony-Chan and AccessBlade do not own anything to do with the Diamond/Joker/Clover/Heart no kuni no Alice series. We do, however, own the dozen of OCs that are going to turn Wonderland upside down. **

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><p><strong>Alexios - Prologue<strong>

Prince Alexios, second prince and heir to the throne of Harmonia, couldn't shake off the feeling that he and the team he led had walked right into a trap despite the success in retrieving the core of the Ark. Maybe it had to do with the fact that there was no one pursuing them. Or maybe it was because retrieving the core had been a little too anti-climactic in his opinion, which made absolutely no sense considering the destructive power of the Ancient Weapon.

The Ark was a weapon of mass destruction from a time long forgotten that had the capacity to take out entire continents. His ancestor King Aerios had deemed the weapon too dangerous and had sealed it away with the intent of losing it in the passage of time, unable to find a way to destroy it himself.

However, as humanity proved time and time again, there were still fools who wished to use it's power no matter the cost.

The ancient weapon could turn the tide of war for whoever possessed it. Whoever had the Ark literally held the fate of the world in their hands and unfortunately for the Kingdom of Harmonia, it had fallen into the grasp of their enemy: the Stille Empire.

It turned out that while the Stille Empire had concentrated on sending wave after wave of the majority of their forces against Harmonia to keep the majority of their soldiers busy and on the defensive, a small group of soldiers had been sent out to scope for the long lost weapon that was thought to be a legend. It was only thanks to the Kingdom's spies that they were able to catch wind of the Empire's search. Unfortunately, by the time they had gotten this information the Empire had already discovered where the Ark was hidden.

In response to this information that cost them the lives of several of their spies, Alexios' older brother Stephen ordered him to take a team and prevent the weapon from firing at all costs. On such short notice, Alexios grabbed the people he was most familiar with (which included that bastard Philip) and set off. Time was of the essence and he and the team that he picked out could not afford to waste any more; especially when it concerned the Ark, the ancient weapon that had been rumoured to have destroyed several kingdoms in the past until his ancestor had put a stop to it.

With the Ark, the Stille Empire wouldn't even have to go anywhere near the kingdom to over take it. Not when it could easily destroy it from a long distance. One blast from it's canon and Harmonia wouldn't even exist any more. The only thing that left in its wake would be a gigantic crater on the ground. It was only thanks to the weapon having been lost in time for so long and being far from firing ready that they weren't all dead yet.

"This was too easy..." Alexios glanced over his left shoulder to see the puzzled expression on Krystelle, his former Royal Guard (or babysitter as many liked to joke) and now the current Magic Knight Commander's, face. Her lips were pulled down into a slight frown. "Shouldn't there have been more soldiers guarding the Core? Or at least one of the Death Generals in the area?"

"I agree." If Alexios hadn't been holding on to the core, the Prince would have run his hand through his crimson hair in frustration. Why in the world would the Stille Empire leave their greatest trump card so... defenseless? "For something so important, it was too under guarded for my taste."

"Then obviously it's a trap and the Empire has something up it's deceptive sleeve." A second, much colder voice remarked from his right, voicing Alexios' earlier thoughts. It was Prince Philip of Stille; second in line for the throne and probably the biggest traitor to the Empire in its entire history. "If they didn't bother making guarding the core top priority, then they plan on retrieving it from us one way or another later on."

It took every bit of Alexios' will power not to snap back at the other Prince. Instead, he settled for shooting the person in question a dark look before focusing on the path in front of him.

"Over my dead body." Alexios voice was flat and grim. It wasn't a figure of speech either; Alexios would literally die before he let the Ark's core fall into the Stille Empire's hands again.

"Your dead body will probably be the only thing standing in their way after they find us. And that shouldn't be too much of a barrier for the Generals to break through." Even though the Harmonian Prince couldn't see the smug bastard's expression, he just knew that there was a sneer fixed on his face and that he _dared _him to say something about that comment.

But before he could turn around and give the the Stille Prince a piece of his mind, Krystelle cut in before he could speak.

"Before you two start arguing, need I remind you both that we're currently running away from any possible pursuers that Stille might have sent after us?" There was no trace of amusement in her voice and it lacked its usual softness and cheery tone.

Alexios knew that tone. He also knew not to piss off the usually mild Krystelle when she started using it.

"Right." Alexios bit down on the retort that had been about to leave his lips. He would have to yell at the Stille Prince later when they were out of ear shot of his former Royal Guard.

The next few minutes were tense as Alexios and his companions continued to run in silence. When they neared the rendezvous point, the three of them wordlessly picked up their pace as one with the intent of reaching the allies they were forced to leave behind earlier after an ambush. When they made it to the clearing that they left their other three companions in (that also had plenty of cover in case there were any Stille forces patrolling), it came evident that something was wrong.

The fact that Stille's Six Death Generals were in the clearing was a dead giveaway to that testament.

"What are they doing here?" He heard Krystelle suck in a harsh breath.

"Damn. That would explain why there were barely any soldiers around the Ark." Philip muttered.

Alexios, meanwhile, was wondering just _what the_ _fuck _the Stille's best and most dangerous fighters were doing in the small clearing. Shouldn't they have been out on the battlefield wrecking havoc on the Harmonian forces?

Why would they be in such a insignificant spot waiting for-

He grimaced.

_Shit._

_'It was a trap after all...'_

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><p>While Alexios had been expecting <em>something <em>to arise, he was definitely not expecting _them: _the Stille Empire's Six Death Generals. Stille's six elite warriors who led the rest of the forces against Harmonia.

Morgan the Swift.

Azrael the Strong.

Orion the Necromancer.

Dahlia the Healer.

Vita the Siren.

Tristan the Dark.

They were the six people you never, ever wanted to meet on the battlefield. An encounter with them typically meant death and only a handful of people survived to tell the tale after any fight with them. Engaging them in a one-on-one battle was tantamount to suicide and each and every one of them were skillful enough to easily wipe out several squadrons of knights at once.

There was a reason they were called the 'Death Generals' after all.

"Ah... I guess you figured it out." The only dark haired woman of the group giggled when she spotted them. "But it looks like you were too late. Better luck next time!"

"Not that there's going to _be _a next time." A blond haired man in his mid to early twenties snorted.

Alexios felt Krystelle tense next to him, but that came as no surprise. The Magic Knight Commander was always uncomfortable whenever she saw Vita the Siren and everyone knew it, no matter how much she tried to hide that particular fact.

"Good." A blonde haired woman with a stern face stepped forward, dark blue eyes coldly scanning over them before they landed on Alexios. "You kept the Core safe."

That was Morgan the Swift for you; not one to beat around the bush and always straight to the point.

"So we could what?" Philip stepped forward as well, his blood red eyes narrowed until they were nearly slits. "Hand it over to you? Did you obviously think we were just going to hand over the core without a fight?"

Alexios was certain that the temperature in the clearing had dropped below zero when those words left Philip's lips. While he and Philip were allies (a very stretched term to describe their constant state of argument relationship in Alexios opinion), even he could not suppress the shudder that ran down his spine at just how glacial the latter's voice was when he said that. Judging by the momentary unease that he had seen flash through The Swift's eyes, she must have felt uncomfortable at her Prince's words as well.

"If you value their lives, you will."

Alexios, Philip, and Krystelle's heads snapped in the direction of the deep baritone voice. It was Azrael the Strong; he was the oldest of the Six Death Generals and as his title suggested, the strongest out of all of them, though that was only in terms of physical strength. Alexios had engaged in battle with him once before and was not looking forward to any future duels between them; whoever said that he had the strength of a raging bear had NOT been exaggerating.

Thankfully for all of Harmonia he was one of the more saner and honorable generals alongside Morgan the Swift. He may have been the oldest of the Death Generals, but that didn't make him any less dangerous. In fact, his status as a veteran soldier made him even more dangerous. Alexios recalled his father saying a long time ago that the most dangerous type of soldier was one who had grown old; their bodies may have aged but their skills and reflexes they learnt on the battlefield were sharp well honed, making them formidable opponents.

"'Their lives?'" Philip repeated dully.

The Harmonian Prince felt his stomach drop. He had a good idea as to who Azrael was referring to. After all, if the Death Generals were here instead of the comrades he had been forced to leave behind-

Vita the Siren's giggle snapped him out of his thoughts. She, along with Tristan the Dark, stepped sideways to reveal the bound forms of their comrades as well as one dragon in it's civilian form.

Marija. Calista. And Silver and his bonded dragon. All tied up, bound and waiting for them as if they were presents rather than hostages to be used against them.

"Let me make this clear," The Swift's powerful voice sounded through out the clearing. "The lives of your comrades for the Core. If you refuse to comply..." She trailed off. She didn't need to say anything else; the Harmonian Prince knew that she and the other five Death Generals would kill their three disarmed and defenseless comrades on the spot if they did not hand over the Ark's Core.

He also knew that he would be damning the lives of countless millions if he _did _hand it over.

"It is your choice, Prince Alexios." Ice blue eyes narrowed. "Their fate is in your hands."

_'Ha. Damned if I do, damned if I don't.' _Alexios was far from the fool he had been in his youth as he considered the precarious dilemma.

When Alexios first participated in the war years ago, he did so with the naivete that he was doing what was expected of him as the Prince and a Royal of Harmonia. He had grown up in the castle of his ancestors, regaled on tales of their heroics. Hearing about the adventures and victories of kings' past had inspired him to strive to become a legend like them and have his name marked down in history; to have his story passed down to his descendants centuries from now when he was long gone from the world.

It wasn't until much later that the Prince realized that his ancestors had censored many things when they passed down their stories to their descendants. Such as the dark side of war.

How Alexios ever got it into his head that war was a means to become a hero and gain glory was beyond him.

The blood spilled from soldiers on both sides.

Villages razed to the ground in Scorched Earth tactics.

The innocents caught in the crossfire between two warring forces.

Alexios had seen it all and much more.

No wonder his father, titled as the 'Wise King', had smiled sadly when Alexios boasted that he would win the war for Harmonia and bring back peace and prosperity to their lands for their people. The man must have known that his son was going to be in for a harsh reality check once he was on the battlefield, but he did not stop him from joining the war, believing in his sons to make their own choices in life and to deal with whatever outcome that came from their decisions.

That had been the last time that Alexios had spoken to his father. A year later the Wise King was assassinated by an unknown hand, though it was strongly suspected that Dark Law, the biggest and most infamous Assassin Guild in the lands was responsible for the Harmonian Ruler's death. They were the only assassins with enough skill and resources to break through the Kingdom's heavy guard and slit the throat of a man who desired nothing but peace and happiness for his people.

While Alexios had learned that war was far from what he originally thought, he never regretted his choice. He had learned more about his people participating in the conflict than he ever would have had he chosen to stay in the castle.

And now he was presented with another choice that dictated not only the fate of his knights (and the traitorous Stille Prince), but those of his Kingdom as well:

His comrades or his Kingdom?

Alexios smiled sadly.

Morgan had given him an easy choice.

As a Prince of Harmonia he had a duty to perform.

As soldiers of Harmonia they had no choice but to carry out his orders.

As a great tactician Philip would understand why he made this decision.

Alexios brought out the Core he had been carefully cradling the entire time while they were on the run and handed it to the Magic Knight Commander. She was the one who he entrusted with what he was planning next.

"Your highness?" Krystelle took the Core from him carefully as he turned to face the Leader of the Death Generals. She must have seen his pain gaze when their eyes met, because her own green-blue ones hardened and she gave a small nod, indicating that she knew what he wanted her to do.

"Have you made your choice?" Morgan the Swift asked. "I will not ask you again: the Core or your comrades?"

"Neither." He and Krystelle said at the same time.

The Core in Krystelle's hand began to glow as she started to charge it with her magic.

When they had taken the Core from the Ark, Krystelle and Philip, both being magic users and therefore magic sensitive, noticed that it had been filled to its' capacity of magical power and was soon ready to be fired. But like all magical artifacts that relied on magic to power them, the Ark's Core had a slight drawback: there was only so much magic it could absorb before it exploded and released all the magic it formerly contained into the surrounding area.

And with the amount of magic that the Core held, it was enough to take out the entire forest and more. The Ark was a means to enhance it's destructive capacity; without it the Core was just a pretty rock. A pretty rock that could take out the entire area if pushed past it's magical capacity, but a rock all the same.

"Wait. What are you-? You plan on overloading the Core?!" The cold facade that Morgan always had when they encountered one another had been replaced by... fear? Alexios would have savoured it if they weren't all about to die. "But that will destroy everything in the surrounding area..." Blue eyes widened in horror.

Alexios saw the exact moment when Morgan the Swift realized that was _exactly_ what he and Krystelle planned on doing.

"Damned if I do, damned if I don't. If we don't give you the Core, you'll kill our comrades and then us and just take it from our corpses. If we give it to you, even if you do decide to spare our lives, we will condemn millions of others to die." Alexios smirked. "At least this way, we take the Stille Empire's best fighters down with us."

There was a loud crack as the Ark's Core could no longer contain the magic it held and exploded.

The last thing that Alexios saw was the world around him flooding with light.

_'Sorry Stephen. I know I promised that I would make it back alive, but... it looks like... I won't be able to...' _

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><p>Do you know one interesting fact when I was writing this? I came up with the Kingdom and Empire's names by looking at my fellow co-author's name!<p>

Harmonia is obviously another form for 'Harmony' while 'Stille' is German for the word 'Silent' which can be associated with the word 'Quiet'.

...

So yeah. Not exactly a necessary piece of information, but a fun trivia fact!

Harmony-chan is going to be writing the next chapter, and I can't wait to read it. Hope you guys enjoy it! And to show your appreciation for the effort my co-author and I put into this story, please review! Really. We love reviews and would seriously enjoy your input into what you think of this!

_AccessBlade _out!


	2. Marija: Chapter 1

Hello everyone, Quiet Harmony-chan here! Finally got the next chapter done and I hope you all enjoy it. Should you have any questions or anything be free to ask them.

**Disclaimer: Access Blade and I don't own Diamond/Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice. However we own the Ocs within this story.**

**Happy reading~!**

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><p>A sharp throbbing was what Marija felt when she was brought back to awareness. Along her legs and arms, within her knotted stomach, even in her veins; everything seemed engulfed in an unnatural pain that refused to subside. Slowly opening her eyes she were met with the sight of a stormy grey sky, the clouds heavy with rain and low enough to be considered fog. <em>'Where am I?'<em>

Sitting up somewhat she hissed when she felt a frenzy of pain in her left side. Placing a palm over the wound, annoyance pricked at her mind when she felt a warm, sticky substance instead of the soft feel of her robes. Removing her hand she found it stained with scarlet blood, the sight prompting her to mutter words of magic and swallow the panic that pricked her heart. Within seconds her hand lit up with a pale green ghostly fire that licked across her side. The gash was slowly healed, the muscle pieced back together and the skin healed over enough to become a soft scab.

Once that task was completed she took a proper look at her surroundings. The place was definitely not the cave that had been adjacent to the battlefield, instead it was a grassy spot that had gray monuments with writing scribbled on the fronts. Some of them were angles, crosses, and there were a few rectangles inserted between these. Flowers laid in front of the monuments as if the person held respect for them.

_'A cemetery?"_ Her lapis blue eyes widened and she stood up, a dull pain erupting in her veins that she promptly ignored. _'Am I dead? I can't be, I know I was alive when the core ruptured and I even have the wounds to prove it!'_

Her thought process stopped when she heard a pained moan followed by a gasp . Following the noise she walked a few spaces away to a dug up grave, inside was Calista who was in an awkward position with one arm twisted under her back and both legs in a spread eagle and her right ankle was twisted all the way to the right as if she had broken it.

Coming close to the edge of the grave Marija called down to her. "Can you here me Calista?"

Fire green eyes looked up at her. "I can here you just fine, but would appreciate it if you could heal me!"

The woman pressed a hand against the smooth, dirt sides of the grave before shaking her head."If I went down then I would also get stuck within this grave."

"Grave?" Her face paled somewhat, making her black hair stand out."I-I'm not dead am I?!"

"I don't know." She said. "It would be probable since that blast from the Ark's core could take out a small country. The fact that we would survive it at all would be a very small percent chance, and if we did we should have some kind of poisoning from the amount of magic pumped through our bodies."

Calista moaned and hit her head against the soft dirt. "I-I really could have lived happily without knowing that." She said. "Now can you get me out of here, please?"

Marija tilted her head to the side, examining the situation for several seconds before shaking her head. "I don't think I can do it on my own, even if I had some rope I'm not strong enough to drag you out."

"If it's help you need I don't mind giving it, Princess." A suave voice called out.

Both women were immediately on their guard as a tall, lanky figure walked through the fog, it wasn't until he was properly revealed that the healer calmed down. "Who is it Marija?"

"Just Silver."

"Oh, alright then."

"Just Silver?" The young man crossed his arms, looking like a pale, cryptic keeper of the graveyard. "I'm the one who can save you and all you have to say is just Silver?" He placed a hand over his chest, coating blood on his leather armor. "You're so cruel to me, Ladies."

Marija stood up and walked over to him, grabbing his wrist to find his entire arm bleeding. Undoing the first few buttons of the sleeve she was met with the sight of a deep gash that was still oozing blood and coated with some dirt. Undoing the rest of the buttons she placed a hand over the wound, a pale green light twisting itself around it.

"Damn that hurts more than the actual wounds." He snapped, watching as the muscle started to piece itself together.

"I apologize," Marija said. "but this is a bad wound. How were you even able to move it around?"

"I'm used to arm and leg wounds."

The healer hummed and let his arm go once the muscle was somewhat healed, leaving only a bloody gash that now resulted from a lack of healed skin. "Now get Calista out of the hole if you will."

"Of course, Princess." He gave a mocking bow and went to the grave, taking out a small, scaly black dragon with ruby-red bat wings. "You may want to go help Krystelle, I saw her healing His Highness over by some rubble east of here."

Marija nodded and began walking through the area, her eyes alert for anything that could come her way. This place that they were now in felt...off to the healer. It lacked something that their world had, something important and vital to all life. It couldn't have been magic, she could sense it pulsing and moving through the air, attempting to bond itself with her, yet something about it just wasn't the same.

_"Perhaps it's the amount."_ She mused. _"There's significantly less than there was in our world, but then the magic would feel the same too."_

A gust of wind blew over the graveyard, causing the woman to huddle in her mage's robes. Perhaps she was thinking too hard on this situation, for now they must heal themselves and discover what exactly happened to the core. Putting the thoughts aside she hurried in Silver's specified direction, finding Krystelle kneeling beside a badly bleeding Alexios. His red hair was matted with blood, some of the dark-colored liquid also ran down his face.

"Are you able to heal it, Krystelle?"

The girl looked up from her task for a moment, her body stiffening in response, but soon relaxed when she recognized the speaker. "I have knowledge of healing, but I can do little aside from basic first aid."

Marija nodded and knelt beside her, helping to mend some of the injury. "I can do little as well, I do not have the magic or energy to do so."

"I don't know why, but it feels as if it's taking longer for my magic to recharge." The knight admitted. "I can still feel the flow of it, but when I try to call upon it the whole effect takes longer."

"I've also noticed this, could it be an effect from this world or the core?" The healer asked. "I know you and His Highness knew the workings of the core better than I."

The girl removed her hands, almost spent. "I'm not sure. The core was made to absorb magic and then release it from the Ark in the form of a cannon's blast, but I don't think it can stop the flow of magic all together."

The healer made to speak again, but stopped when the sound of light footsteps neared them. Through the fog came Philip, his red eyes showing unamusement and a limp in his walk almost making him more skeletal than his albino appearance normally allowed. Glancing over the group a frown pulled on his lips when his gaze met the unconscious Alexios. "Don't tell me you're going to allow him to sleep all day."

Krystelle shook her head. "He's unconscious, a head injury."

The prince walked over to his 'rival' and kicked him in the shin, eliciting a groan from the Harmonian prince, his ice blue eyes flashing open in pain. "What in the hell-"

"Time to awaken from your beauty rest." Philip said, balancing on his left leg. "You've got to figure out where the hell you've led us to."

The young man properly sat up, waving a hand away as Marija tried to help him. She watched her prince in silence, worry pricking at her heart as his face changed from annoyance to shock. Even though She and Philip were the best magic users in their party, Alexios and Kystelle knew the most about the core due to studying it. By the time the Core had come to light within Stille Kingdom, Philip had already abandoned his home. As such the magic users relied heavily on the two warriors when it came to knowledge of the core. Yet it was obvious that Alexios didn't know what was happening.

The healer pressed a finger to her chest and began rubbing it, a nervous habit she developed as a child. "Do you recognize where we are, Your Highness?"

"...No...I thought we were at the Graveyard in Helios City but this one is too small." He pressed a hand into the column next to him and stood up, his legs shaking somewhat from the sudden weight. "Did we all die?"

"Not that I know of." Silver said as he came over, Calista leaning against him so that she could walk. "A dragon can never properly die, yet Thanis is still here."

All eyes turned to Philip and Marija, eager for an explanation. Taking a deep breath the healer gestured to the area around them. "I believe that we managed to cross into another plane of existence."

"That sounds a lot like death to me." Calista said. "That magic was strong enough to kill everyone in the cave and battlefield over!"

"That may be the case but I can still sense life." Philip pointed out. "All of us still have a heart that's pumping blood and the magic that's necessary to upkeep a soul. Either we were shielded in some way from the blast or we teleported into another plane..." He shut his eyes. "My people had tales of separate planes, child stories really, but obviously there seems to be a hint of truth to them...Or we're all just dead, take your pick."

"If we're picking then I choose death." A smooth voice stated, before it was quickly out shined by a hysteric chuckle.

Within seconds all of the allies were within a battle stance as a blonde young man with a large grin on his narrow face walked through the fog. His black robes whispered along the dark green grass, and a chill swept through the air as he came closer. Marija's eyes widened as she caught onto his aura, fear twisting through her system.

_"How did he manage to gain so much magic?! Even if he is a necromancer, there can't be that many souls within a single cemetery!"_

The healer glanced over to Philip and noticed his own pale red orbs widened slightly in shock, it was obvious that he had sensed the power as well. "Lord Alexios his power has increased dramatically since going through the caves, what would you have us to do?"

"Even the little fairy can sense the power flowing through my veins?" Orion said, his thin arms coming out of he sleeves of his cloak. "Good, I want everyone to know that on this day Orion Crius Thamien killed the last threat to the Stille Empire."

As soon as the words left his mouth a burst of icy wind blew through the area coupled with high-pitched screams. Slowly small, black dots began twinkling through the gray just to be mixed with a hellish blue ghostly light that showed the outline of what was once a human. Like beautiful dancers they edged their way out of the ground. The moment they broke into the air a bolt of lightning lashed out at them parking hot and eager to hit the target.

Orion's storm grey eyes narrowed as he took in the sight of a smirking Philip. "I see even when injured your magic skills are still flawless, however," He extended a hand and the shadows began bending themselves to create a giant sword. "within the cemetery I am far more powerful than you ever dreamed!"

With a flick of his wrist the sword swept past the allies, trying to land a hit that could ultimately kill them. Grasping the magic around her, Marija held up two fingers and a spark of silver ignited before the magic was negated, causing the shadows to disappear. Without missing a beat the necromancer caused a mass of the shadows to come out of a single grave, attacking the allies head on. Unsheathing her blade, Calista swung at the creatures with her weapon, barely managing to cut through one as another sped past her head to attack Krystelle. The woman held her palm out and the fog twisted around into a mini tornado sucking up multiple of the shadows and dispersing them.

Through the fight each of the allies were forced to use magic due to the undead only being able to die by them, but it quickly began to show that they were hurting and tired as the shadows began to surround them.

Causing his spear to light on fire, Alexios stabbed through a shadow before slashing another that threatened to bring him under the ground. "We need to get him out of the cemetary!"

Slicing through another shadow Krystelle pressed her back against a tombstone, the edges digging into her back and aggravating her wounds. "How, this place is massive!"

Philip glanced around, dodging the shadows while stabbing them with his electricity. "Perhaps we can lure him through the gate while Marija begins a teleporting spell."

The woman stopped strangling a shadow with a water spell. "I don't have the energy required for such a spell, Prince Philip. I would die before the spell was completed and perhaps kill everyone else should a magic blast happen!"

"I'll help you," Silver said as he pulled his dragon out of his quiver. "just start it up."

The woman nodded and turned to Kyrstelle. "Please cover me."

"Right."

The two quickly made their way to the gate, using the fog and graves as ways to slide past the shadows. However the shadows still followed them, forcing Krystelle to fight back with her impressive magic and sword skills. WIthin minutes the two managed to get to the pristine, wrought iron gate. Slipping a smooth stone out of her pouch she began pushing in the last of her magic and energy into it.

"Hurry up Marija!" Alexios snapped as he became cornered by multiple shadows only just managing to keep them from entering his body and taking over his mind.

"This takes time, Your Highness."

He made to retort, but ducked when a small dragon flew over his head. "Thanis'll give you what you need, Princess!"

The small dragon perched on top of the orange crystal and began to breathe over it, a soft red glow beginning to burn. Shutting her eyes Marija fought to concentrate and mutter the activation words so they could leave. The magic pulsed through her veins and made her heart race, each of the words fell off her lips like hot coals and she felt as if she would burst. Just when she reached the end of the spell a loud band rang through out the air, halting the healer in her spell.

Opening her eyes she looked over to the noise and saw a man holding a shotgun in hand with over twenty men behind him. "So will any of you explain why you're in my grave yard?"

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><p><strong>And that was the end of that. I guess since Access Blade gave you a bit of trivia last time I can give you some as well. Alexios' name was originally William, named after William the Conquer of Normandy. <strong>


	3. Krystelle: Chapter 2

**I am finally finished. Seriously. It took me about forever to finally complete this, but I managed somehow.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Diamond/Joker/Clover/Heart kuni no Alice. I do, however, own Krystelle who was the main character in this fic.**

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><p><strong>Krystelle - Chapter Two<strong>

Krystelle was the first one to recover from the third party's sudden intrusion in to what had been an intense and dramatic battle.

"Your... graveyard?" She repeated, tilting her head to the side and mustering the most innocent look she could onto her face. The same look she used on her teachers back in the Magic Academy to get out of trouble (that hadn't been started by _her_).

It was a dumbfounded repeat of the man's original statement. The man had just literally come out of nowhere with twenty other people and disrupted their only chance of escape without ANY of them being aware of it until now. Judging by the slight slack of Orion's jaw and the unmoving shadows they had been fighting against, the Harmonia group was not the only one caught off guard by the intruder in their fight.

One minute, they were all fighting for their lives and _losing _because of the sudden magic boost that Orion had gained and the next, the representatives of both the Stille Empire and Harmonian Kingdom were forced to come to a stand still as they dealt with the newcomers.

"Yup." The man grinned. He appeared to be in his late thirties to forties and he had slicked back brown hair and gray eyes. He gave off the impression of being relaxed and laid back- a demeanor that fooled none of them due to the fact that he was holding a weapon in his hands. It was obvious that he was the leader of the sudden twenty spectators of their battle. "Imagine my surprise when one of my men tells me that a bunch of intruders were duking it out in my graveyard... all of them with faces."

"Faces?" Krystelle couldn't keep the confusion out of her voice at such an incredulous statement. "Of course we have faces- OW!"

The Magic Knight Commander hissed at the sudden hard impact in her side. She turned her head slightly to see Alexios at her side, his gaze staring straight ahead at something with an expression akin to horror.

"They don't have eyes," Her liege said under his breath. _"They don't have eyes."_

What was Prince Alexios talking about? Krystelle turned her head in the direction that the Harmonian Royal was staring at and froze. She then reached up to pinch her cheeks to make sure that yes, she was wide awake and that this was reality.

Since her attention had been on the man leading them (who looked normal enough save for the shotgun he was holding in his hand), she hadn't paid a lot of attention to the men standing behind him, merely acknowledging that things would get messy if they had to fight them. Had she actually paused and really _looked, _she would have noticed that they were missing an important part of their facial structures.

She would have realized that _none _of them had eyes.

Before Krystelle's mind could try and comprehend the fact that about twenty people in the graveyard were missing their _eyes, _Philip stepped forward, most likely to take control of the conversation she had started before she realized that _ohmygoddesstheydon'thaveeyes._

"It was never our intention to intrude in your graveyard." The Stille Prince said smoothly in his best diplomatic voice that could charm women into giving him their first born children (though what Philip would want with newborns was beyond- on second thought, maybe she was better off not knowing). "Unfortunately, circumstances have forced us to trespass into your territory. If you feel the need for reparations, you may want to look to him for answers. I believe he would be happy to give them to you."

When Philip had said circumstances, he gestured to Orion who was still surrounded by the shadows he was commandeering. It was his way of saying 'That's the guy you want! Go after him! Meanwhile, while you're doing that, we'll just sneak off quietly in hopes that the two of you destroy each other! Have fun!'.

...

...it was kind of scary what her mind came up with sometimes. But not as scary as the fact that Philip was being _courteous. Courteous_.The only time that Philip was ever _courteous _was when he either planned on stabbing you in the back or was plotting your downfall. The leader of the third party must have instantly put himself on the Stille prince's enemy list by interrupting their fight with Orion, Krystelle surmised.

(Even if the intruder had unknowingly saved them all from a battle that would have cost them either one or two of their lives and was now stalling the necromancer long enough to come up with a second escape plan).

Unfortunately for Team Harmonia, Orion caught onto what Philip was scheming and decided that he wanted no part in the Prince's plans. He opened his mouth when he was interrupted.

"Lord Jericho?" The faceless man closest to the leader inquired. "What are we going to do with them?"

The man now named Jericho rubbed his chin, looking thoughtful. "Well-"

He was cut off by Orion.

"Not so fast your _highness,_" The necromancer hissed. "I believe that you and your _friends _are the ones who should stay behind and explain our presence to the man. After all, both the Harmonian Prince and his Magic Knight Commander are the reason we are in this mess in the first place."

...

Everyone turned to stare at Prince Alexios and her, the man and his army of eyeless men included when they saw who their companions (and the necromancer) were staring at.

"Is this really the time to be placing the blame on us?" The red haired royal muttered.

Krystelle merely frowned and contemplated how she would get back at the Necromancer for putting them under everyone's scrutiny.

A second loud bang returned their attention to the man again. This time, he wasn't the only one wielding his weapon as his subordinates were also now carrying weapons.

(Weapons that came out of nowhere. Where were all of them hiding those?)

"How about this? Since you can't seem to decide on anything, how about we just take you _all_ in for questioning. Does that seem fair to all of you?" The man was still smiling, but the tone in his voice said that they were going to comply with his demands whether they liked it or not.

_'To cooperate or to not cooperate?' _The soldier within Krystelle weighed the pros and cons of each scenario. Cooperating would be the best choice if they wanted to get out of this unscathed, but that meant that they would have to hand over their weapons and put themselves at the mercy of the owner of the Graveyard and his men who they knew nothing about and who did not look all that merciful. Non-cooperation would lead to a fight and while the Magic Knight Commander was confident they would win the battle against Orion, they would be putting themselves at the mercy of _the Necromancer_ who would have no qualms in taking advantage of their exhausted state to finish them off for good.

"Damn it! Looks like I have to do everything myself!"

Orion's anger filled declaration snapped Krystelle out of her thoughts and she was barely able to block the oncoming attack of one of the shadowy figures that the Necromancer was controlling again. Judging from the various yelps and cursing nearby, she wasn't the only one dealing with his new found minions again.

"Knight Commander," Prince Philip's voice sounded from her left after she took down three more shadows.

"Yes, Prince Philip?" Krystelle slashed at a fourth shadow and then stabbed a fifth. "A little busy here!"

And there went _three more shadows_ as she controlled the air around them to take off their heads.

"We need a distraction." The Stille Prince's voice had a grim tone to it; the one he usually used when they were in a situation he was unsure they would escape from alive.

Krystelle _really _hated that tone.

"What kind?" She asked anyways.

She then stabbed two more shadows and beheaded another two while Philip ripped off the head of one that got a little too close to him with his bare hands.

"The throw-multiple-cyclones-at-your-enemies kind. Preferably in Orion's direction."

"Alright." She nodded. "Brace yourselves."

"I am NOT an idiot." Philip said flatly as he moved on to speak to the others. He sounded offended that she even gave him a warning in the first place. "I'm going to let everyone know what's going on."

Krystelle just smiled as she began to form one of her most dangerous and powerful wind spells. The moment she released the spell, she and the others had to get away from the area as fast as their legs could carry them lest they got caught in their own attack. The spell did not discriminate in who it attacked and could just as easily take out her allies as well as her enemies.

The air around her began to howl, a green magic glyph forming underneath her to signify that she was casting a wind element spell. Normally one would need to chant an incantation to start off the spell they wanted to cast; Krystelle needed no such thing.

"No! Stop her!" She heard Orion scream when he realized what she was attempting to do. "Get the Knight Commander! GET HER!"

A quick glance over her shoulder told her that the rest of the group was already running, getting away from the oncoming storm as fast as they could. Several of the men from the third party had broken away from the rest and were running after them, but Krystelle wasn't too worried. Probably because she was confident that the pursuers could be easily taken down.

And probably also because she had other things to deal with.

"Tempest!"

Mainly throwing several cyclones at a certain annoying Necromancer and then watching in grim satisfaction as he screamed while the three natural disasters ripped through his new minions and made a beeline for him.

The high pitched scream of fury and rage that soon came afterwards told her that the cyclones (or one of them at least) had found their intended target. But rather than stick around to further admire her work that was no doubt going to be wrecking havoc in the surrounding area and then some, Krystelle turned away and fled, amusing herself by listening to the Necromancer's screams of vengeance towards her.

The Knight Commander couldn't keep the smile off her face as she ran towards a section of the graveyard's fence, using the wind to enhance her speed and jumping over the black metal spires as she finally made her escape.

* * *

><p>"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"<p>

Krystelle was well aware of how she must have looked to everyone as she ran through the town. However, she ignored the weird stares she was getting as she concentrated her gaze on the back of the man who had bumped into her earlier. Bumped into her with the intent of stealing her golden locket which he had, unfortunately, succeeded in. Which would explain her current predicament of screaming at the top of her lungs as she chased him down to get back what originally belonged to her.

"Get back here! That's mine!" She shouted as she mowed down everyone who didn't get out of her path fast enough. It should have been obvious to everyone watching her and the thief that she was after that the Knight Commander wasn't going to be stopping any time soon. Not until she retrieved her locket.

Normally catching a thief such as the one who had robbed her would have been easy. If she had been at full strength, she would have already caught up with the man and thrown up him into the tree after she had retrieved her possession.

Alas that was not the case.

Actually, she wouldn't have been so caught off guard by a pick pocket if her mind hadn't been elsewhere and far, far away from reality.

But having to retrieve the Ark's core with the expectation that it was going to be heavily guarded by the enemy, using her own magic to over load the core so that the Stille Empire didn't get their hands on such a destructive weapon, and then having an impromptu battle in a graveyard not only with Orion but its owner and his minions?

Was it any wonder she was so distracted by everything that she missed being the victim of a theft until she realized that something felt off? And on top of _that_, she had been separated from everyone else!

"GUAGH!"

The man that Krystelle had been pursuing suddenly stumbled and fell backwards with a gurgle that was likely his death rattle. Red sprayed into the air and Krystelle had to jump back to avoid it, eyes wide as she tried to find who or what had attacked that man because there were now knives embedded into his chest and throat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something coming at her at a high speed.

She didn't even think about what she did next. Her body reacted immediately and Krystelle hit the ground with a hard impact as she threw herself onto the pavement to avoid the on coming object.

The object flew overhead, but the onslaught wasn't over.

Krystelle propelled her body to roll away from where she had initially landed as she avoided several more projectiles that would have impaled her if she continued to lay mobile. She pushed herself off the ground and summoned a barrier spell in front of her just in time to throw the next round of projectiles off course.

Breathing in deeply from using magic even though her mana reserves were so low, she just barely caught the last one that had been aimed for her face.

This was one of the few times she appreciated the fast reflexes that she developed as a result of the the six year war back home.

A quick glance at the object identified it as a knife. A well maintained one if the light glinting off of the metal and her clear reflection in the blade were any indication. Krystelle did not doubt that the other projectiles thrown at her and her unfortunate pickpocket were either the same or very similar.

"That was a cheap shot." She said standing up straight as she looked across at the person who she presumed threw the knives. "Tell me, is it customary for the people of this land to greet others by trying to kill them?"

* * *

><p><strong>Can you guess who the person who attacked the Magic Knight Commander, was? I'll give you a hint- they are a roleholder!<strong>

**So finally done. Next chapter will be done by Quiet-Harmony! Hope you enjoyed this and I'll see you next time!**


End file.
